EXCLUSIVE: Bella Freud and Karla Welch Join Forces for a Cause
British fashion designer Bella Freud and Los Angeles-based celebrity stylist Karla Welch have teamed up for charity, launching limited-edition T-shirts showcasing works by artists Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Ellen Gallagher, John Giorno, Beatriz Milhazes, Annie Morris and Ugo Rondinone.
Priced at $48 each and available exclusively on bellafreud.com and xkarla.com starting on Aug. 31, all profits will be donated and equality divided to benefit the East Los Angeles Women’s Center in the U.S. and Southall Black Sisters in the U.K. Both nonprofits work to support victims of domestic abuse.
“Soon after the world went into lockdown, I started to hear about the escalation of domestic abuse and violence in the home,” Freud said. “I wanted to do something to help and to raise awareness about what is happening. Fashion is a way to carry a message, to create something beautiful to help someone. The more we can come together, the better.”
She approached Welch to collaborate on the endeavor and reached out to her connections in the art world: “Karla and her artist husband Matthew Welch have their own printing setup, which means we can make the images on our T-shirts to a high standard, very important when asking artists to be involved in this project.”
For her part, Welch said: “I’m such a fan of Bella. I’ve used her suits for years and we’ve gotten to know each other through the wonders of social media. She asked, and it was a no brainer to say yes…and listen, I know it’s hard for many, many people, so we are thrilled and really honored for anyone to buy a tee right now and join in our support.”
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